[Scoot]

I've just finished reading the Times today and found out that yet another two chains are going into administration.

So my local high street will most likely lose Hawkins Bazzar, Past Times , La Senza , Priceless and with HMV in trouble , Comet , Waterstones, Game , Gamestation , Blockbusters ,Thomas Cook and with several small independents on the high street in serious trouble i honestly can't see much future for it.

I'm part of the blame for this. My wife and I use a kindle. I use my iPad to down
load the Times , so I don't go into my local shop to pick up the paper. I use Apple TV instead of Blockbuster and my music is down loaded from Itunes and Amazon for most things else.

So my personal feeling is the high street and landlords are @@@ked!! There will be many more jobs lost over the next 5 years. Where are all these people going to find new employment? It's not like they have a profession to fall back on and I would imagine that a lot of them are parents working part time earning an income to help the family budget.

And then look at the self service tills at Tescos and B and Q!

Sorry to be so pessimistic on New Years Eve.

Scoot

[dxb335d]

I think your right mate. It's very sad indeed.

[rogerxp]

I'd change the paper you read

[KadeSdad]

Times change, so does life.

If everything stayed the same then we would never advance.

I for one welcome the coming year, Happy New Year All!

[Mike in Hampshire]

Originally Posted by KadeSdad

If everything stayed the same then we would never advance.
I for one welcome the coming year, Happy New Year All!

Agree with both these sentiments. Yes it is sad when high streets lose established names, but isn't that just the way business works? As in, not enough people want your format/price/range.

Example, yesterday I went into the HMV store in Southampton. It was noisy, cramped and badly laid out, I thought. And the FIFA 2012 game was £40. HMV online had it for £23 delivered, ordered from the comfort of my home. OK, HMV got the sale but what is the point of their high street store?

It is survival of the fittest out there, and you have to wonder if we really need so many shoe shops, electrical retailers, music stores and the like. I think in the long run the high street will look very different from today, and I see that as painful but ultimately a good thing.

Progress? Bring it on, and Happy New (several) Year(s)!
Mike.

[Ryan87]

Our highstreet is going the same way,

Although each time we lose a proper retailer it gets replaced by either a mobile phone shop or a betting shop.

The amount we have of both in one stretch is rather frightening!

[RagingKileak]

To be honest the high street is its own worst enemy. They have been preying on people's will to make impulse buys for years and years - now the shoe is on the other foot and the cheapest price almost always wins where like for like commodity items are concerned.

I feel for small independent retailers and those normal folk who will lose their jobs in the chains, but HMV themselves and all the rest can go jump. At an executive level, they could have shaped the digital revolution but they never did.

When's honk about this - back in 2001 if HMV had approached Apple to discuss the idea of 'iTunes boothes' in every HMV store, would the way digital music has spread have been the same, or would the size of HMV's brand the relatively slow uptake of broadband at the time have led to it being viable?

Same thing for GAME. I worked for Gameplay before and after the .com crash in 2000 and we were always cheaper. GAME continued to rape the high street consumer and eventually acquired Gameplay and Gamestation. Now high street consumers are forced into their stores and the main 'online' competitor is part of the same group - where have the customers gone? Sendit, GameStop, Zavvi etc - anywhere that delivers the same thing for less.

Matt

[chrisbin]

What frustrates me is the way that the planners and their employers continue to wreck the high streets with their decisions...Cash Generator, Money Shop and now Ramsdens have all opened shops within yards of each other, within the last 6 months, in the town where our business is located - how can that possibly make sense??

The High street now consists of banks, hairdressers, pawnbrokers (see above) and £1 shops.........as a result the number of people attracted to shop there is going down rapidly...

[335iLondon]

Agree with Mike and Kade,

Do we all still go to a blacksmiths and butchers and bakers?
No

Times change, I never understand why people get emotional about chains of shops having to close.
Move with the times, and change the business model or close.
No sympathy for HMV etc as they just have not moved with the times, innovated or changed their offer in the last 10 years!
More people in the country means and no new land, means we must be more efficient with what we have. Internet shopping, amazon et al tick that box.

The next big thing is the solution to home delivery never being easy as most are not home at the time!
Cue a trial of shopping lockers in city centre locations.
Shoppers get emailed a pin code and collect their item from a secure locker near their place of work.

[Kerr]

Some of those high treet retailers have been exceptionally deceptive this Christmas with their deals.

I've lost count of loads of adverts with laptops and TVs that sound amazing value at half price. Sadly the item was never worth anywhere near the previous price.

It's totally misleading and was done to the death this year. People don't understand computer specification and it was easy to rip people off.

I don't like seeing people lose their jobs but shops like Barrets and priceless shoes just sell shit.

Hawkins Bizarre just seemed to pop up at a local centre near Christmas and close shortly afterwards. When they were open they sold overpriced nasty gadgets and are no loss to me either.

Is it next year when online places like Play.com have to pay full VAT? I'm sure it is and that will help the high street a bit.

[335iLondon]

I think you may think planners have more power than they actually have.
If a retail unit has consent for a retail space in place anyone can trade from this space.
Banks and Food retailers may need a change of use.
The reality is that Cash Generator and the likes have very low overhead costs, take a short term lease and will probably not stay in 50% of their locations for more than 3 years or whatever the lease is.

Originally Posted by chrisbin

What frustrates me is the way that the planners and their employers continue to wreck the high streets with their decisions...Cash Generator, Money Shop and now Ramsdens have all opened shops within yards of each other, within the last 6 months, in the town where our business is located - how can that possibly make sense??

The High street now consists of banks, hairdressers, pawnbrokers (see above) and £1 shops.........as a result the number of people attracted to shop there is going down rapidly...

[magic77]

Hight streets have had it coming for many years one example is shoe shops. I wear size 12 /13 shoes all the major chains when I go in and ask for sizes I get same replies

"Oh we get lot of requests for these but we dont stock them. "

"Oh yes they are very popular but we only carry one or two you can order them online thought."

Last time I checked retail is all about supply for demand. If type of goods is in demand you sell to capture the market. But it seems they never learn.

We have two usual chains in Camberley Barratts (this one is staying open) and clarks. Neither can ever provide a good range of shoes for anything about 11 in store

If they would provide the stock I would always go in to the store as its better to try things on but as pun goes they are shooting themselves in the foot.
Surely it would make sense to stock some more in store if the demand is there.

Leaves me no option to shop online or in US when ever I get chance.

[Scoot]

I've no doubt that a lot of these high street chains should of adapted quicker to the changing Econimic envoroment but where are these people going to find a job if the high street dies ?

Add to the fact that the knock on effect to other firms that supported the high street retailers going to the wall and we are looking at a slow death of many a business.

I'm not trying to support these high street chains but can anyone tell me where people are going to find work as there are only so many jobs at Tescos and the like ?

[Carrera RSR]

My high street is fucked. Noticed today even charity shops have closed and they have the lowest overheads of all of them

[Kerr]

Originally Posted by Carrera RSR

My high street is fucked. Noticed today even charity shops have closed and they have the lowest overheads of all of them

Some of the people working for those charity shops get very good salaries.

Our old neighbour worked for The Sue Ryder foundation and could afford a nice house, car, holidays and lifestyle.

[chris_s1]

Sure I feel sorry for the shop floor employees but I'll be glad to see the back of most of the chains that are reportedly in trouble. They deserve exactly what they are getting. They have not moved with the times and having been fighting change instead of embracing it.
Retail landlords have been milking the industry with overpriced rental charges for years and hopefully plenty of units being empty will normalise the prices down to where they should be.

[RCUK]

'Hawkins Bazzar, Past Times , La Senza , Priceless and with HMV in trouble , Comet , Waterstones, Game , Gamestation , Blockbusters ,Thomas Cook '

All these guys are an example of companies not moving with the times.

Hawkins and Past Times - who buys from these places??? They sell uttter crap.

HMV, Comet, Waterstones, Game, Gamestation - they sell their own products for less online! Service is non existent almost in these places.

Blockbusters - they survived the move to video - but downloads were always going to kill them. They milked it while they could - £3 a night rental - and late fees???

Online has mullered most.... but shouldnt feel sorry for the high street - its only dying as people have realised they getting milked and spending their money elsewhere.

La senza - think were all shedding a tear there.

[Vaheed1]

For me, supermarkets are the biggest threat to our high street. Not only for the high street, but also for small independent businesses.

I really don't understand the governments stance on the supermarket debate. They say it's a good thing, as they create jobs - yet, how many of them actually employ over 50% full time employees? Personally, I know 3 people who've had to close their businesses because they simply couldn't compete with the local/express stores that had opened close by. Today, I heard another family friend had lost over 50% of his turnover because, unbelievably, a Sainsbury local store was granted a store 1 door down. This hasn't only effected him, but the local fruit shop and delicatessen. Can someone tell me why 3 people in such a short area should lose their livelihoods, so a supermarket could employ 5-8 part time staff?

Did anyone see the 'only fools and horses' episode on BBC1 yesterday - where Uncle Albert goes missing and they find him on the old docks? This was in the early 90's and even then, they recognised what effect them changes had on the local communities. These sorts of places provide jobs for generations. For those who aren't interested in a academic life and professional occupation.

[buckethead]

there's still the construction industry & service industry ie chefs/waiters hotel staff for the working class who would like to go to college & get a qualification..taxi drivers etc..but no these jobs are for cheaper immigrant workers..worry about cutting costs today no planning for the future..great

[greggS]

Originally Posted by Vaheed1

For me, supermarkets are the biggest threat to our high street. Not only for the high street, but also for small independent businesses.

I really don't understand the governments stance on the supermarket debate. They say it's a good thing, as they create jobs - yet, how many of them actually employ over 50% full time employees? Personally, I know 3 people who've had to close their businesses because they simply couldn't compete with the local/express stores that had opened close by. Today, I heard another family friend had lost over 50% of his turnover because, unbelievably, a Sainsbury local store was granted a store 1 door down. This hasn't only effected him, but the local fruit shop and delicatessen. Can someone tell me why 3 people in such a short area should lose their livelihoods.

I really do feel for anyone who loses their livelihood in all this but isn,t this situation inevitable? Unfortunately we all seem to want an easier shopping experience hence supermarkets stocking everything from food to clothing etc etc. Also lets think about the boom in shopping malls, I live close to the dartford tunnel and within a ten mile radius is Lakeside, Bluewater and now Westfield shopping mall, all of them taking customers away from the high street. And thats not even looking at the boom in internet shopping!

[SomeRandomer123]

Why has La Senza gone down the pan though? Steve Jobs, god rest him, doesn't have an electronic device for lingerie!

[Dr Dave]

I bought some La Senza knickers for the wife, she put them on and found the gusset missing. That's where they went wrong I think.